By Paul Imig Special to OnMilwaukee.com Published Oct 21, 2015 at 5:56 PM

The ranks of the undefeated lost a member, going down from six to five with the Falcons' surprising loss to the Saints. Meanwhile, the lone winless team in the league – the Detroit Lions – finally snagged its first W. Where does this leave everybody going into Week 7? Here are the power rankings.

1. New England Patriots (Record: 5-0; Previous rank: 1

Andrew Luck played well (3 TDS, 0 INTs) against New England’s defense, but the Patriots still went into Indianapolis and won.

2. Green Bay Packers (Record: 6-0; Previous rank: 2)

It hasn’t been pretty most weeks, and the Packers’ win over San Diego was no different – with the defense allowing Philip Rivers to have a career day. The bye comes at a perfect time for Green Bay, which needs to get healthy in a hurry before going on the road at undefeated Denver and Carolina.

3. Cincinnati Bengals (Record: 6-0; Previous rank: 4)

Following up a victory over Seattle by winning on the road at Buffalo has turned the perception of the Bengals from a potential playoff speed bump into a legitimate Super Bowl contender.

4. Denver Broncos (Record: 6-0; Previous rank: 3)

They needed overtime to do it, but the Broncos went into Cleveland and won. In the last three games, Peyton Manning has two touchdowns and seven interceptions. Fortunately for Manning, Denver’s defense is superb.

5. Carolina Panthers (Record: 5-0; Previous rank: 8)

Beating the Seahawks in Seattle has turned the Panthers from pretender to contender. Next up for Carolina: the Eagles, Colts and Packers.

6. Arizona Cardinals (Record: 4-2; Previous rank: 5)

The Cardinals seemed unstoppable to begin the season, but they’ve since lost two of their last three games. In Week 6, it was a loss at Pittsburgh against a Steelers team down to their third-string quarterback.

7. Atlanta Falcons (Record: 5-1; Previous rank: 6)

Just when you thought it was safe to trust the Falcons, they lost to the 1-4 Saints. Maybe the short week – it was a Thursday game – is to blame.

8. New York Jets (Record: 4-1; Previous rank: 11)

The Jets are for real? The Jets are for real.

9. Pittsburgh Steelers (Record: 4-2; Previous rank: 12)

Going 2-1 so far without Ben Roethlisberger speaks well of Pittsburgh as an overall team.

10. Seattle Seahawks (Record: 2-4; Previous rank: 7) 

It was going to be a tough schedule for Seattle, having to play the unbeaten Bengals and Panthers in consecutive weeks. Losing both of those games isn’t a good look, though.

11. Minnesota Vikings (Record: 3-2; Previous rank: 9)

The Vikings stayed undefeated at home with a win over Kansas City. Now, Minnesota has a chance to keep the wins piling up with matchups against Chicago (2-4) and Detroit (1-5).

12. Buffalo Bills (Record: 3-3; Previous rank: 10)

Win. Loss. Win. Loss. Win. Loss. Some consistency from the Bills would be nice.

13. Philadelphia Eagles (Record: 3-3; Previous rank: 19)

The Eagles’ up-and-down season continued, this time in a positive way by getting a 20-point win over the Giants.

14. New York Giants (Record: 3-3; Previous rank: 13)

The Giants’ three-game winning streak came to a screeching halt by losing to the Eagles by 20.

15. Indianapolis Colts (Record: 3-3; Previous rank: 14)

Andrew Luck is back and looked good. But the coaching in Indianapolis has come under serious question after a humorously disastrous special teams play in Week 6.

16. St. Louis Rams (Record: 2-3; Previous rank: 15)

Hopefully the Rams used their bye week to try to find ways of maintaining a certain level of success. Like the Bills, they’re wildly inconsistent.

17. Dallas Cowboys (Record: 2-3; Previous rank: 16)

Dallas is another week closer to getting Dez Bryant and Tony Romo back. The Cowboys have currently lost three in a row.

18. Miami Dolphins (Record: 2-3; Previous rank: 29)

New coach, new attitude. The Dolphins looked great in a blowout victory over Tennessee.

19. Washington (Record: 2-4; Previous rank: 17)

Washington has its share of injuries, but most games have been surprisingly competitive for a team that had few expectations this season.

20. San Diego Chargers (Record: 2-4; Previous rank: 18)

A career day from Philip Rivers couldn’t get the Chargers a win in Green Bay. But it could provide some positive momentum for San Diego.

21. Oakland Raiders (Record: 2-3; Previous rank: 20)

The Raiders just wrapped up their bye and now get a shot at the Chargers.

22. Cleveland Browns (Record: 2-4; Previous rank: 23)

Cleveland put up a good fight against Denver. Like Washington, the Browns have been a pleasant surprise despite a losing record.

23. San Francisco 49ers (Record: 2-4; Previous rank: 31)

Don’t look now, but Colin Kaepernick is actually playing well again. He’s thrown four touchdowns and zero interceptions in the past two games.

24. New Orleans Saints (Record: 2-4; Previous rank: 26)

The Saints were able to give division rival Atlanta its first loss. Maybe that leads to a positive uptick for New Orleans near the midway point of the season.

25. Tennessee Titans (Record: 1-4; Previous rank: 22)

Tennessee lost big at home (38-10) to the Dolphins, and now Marcus Mariota might miss some time with an injury.

26. Baltimore Ravens (Record: 1-5; Previous rank: 24)

Baltimore’s first four losses are by a combined 14 points, suggesting the Ravens could turn their season around soon. But losing at San Francisco won’t help those Baltimore players feel too good about things.

27. Detroit Lions (Record: 1-5; Previous rank: 28)

Well, at least the Lions won’t go 0-16.

28. Chicago Bears (Record: 2-4; Previous rank: 21)

After winning two in a row, the Bears let Detroit get its first win of the season.

29. Kansas City Chiefs (Record: 1-5; Previous rank: 25)

No Jamaal Charles, and now another loss. This is shaping up to be a lost season for a Chiefs team that had a lot of potential.

30. Houston Texans (Record: 2-4; Previous rank: 30)

It was against the lowly Jaguars, so not much to get excited about. But, a win's a win.

31. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (Record: 2-3; Previous rank: 27)

Tampa Bay isn’t going anywhere this season. It’s all about the progress of Jameis Winston.

32. Jacksonville Jaguars (Record: 1-5; Previous rank: 32)

The Jaguars couldn’t even beat the Texans at home. That’s not good.

Paul Imig Special to OnMilwaukee.com
Paul Imig spent the past five years working for FOX Sports WI. He began by covering the Milwaukee Bucks and Milwaukee Brewers before taking over the Green Bay Packers beat in 2011. In addition to his writing, Paul also made television appearances nationwide on FOX Sports 1. He can be heard on the radio statewide on The Bill Michaels Show and can be seen on Time Warner Cable's Roundtable show with Dennis Krause. Paul is the 2015 recipient of the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee's award for Graduate Of the Last Decade (GOLD).